The brilliant thing about social media is you find and follow like minded people. 

I love the supportive and sharing communities I am part of and one of them #blogphotochat has led to a super giveaway for a lucky reader! 

If you are a blogger and looking to take your blog photography to a new level this is the course for you, and if you are not a blogger but would love to improve your photos then hooray - you are in the right place too!

I follow photographers on Instagram and Twitter whose photos inspire me and photographers who I can openly ask for advice and share our passion for taking better photos. Emma is one of them.

Emma Davies is a talented commercial and fine art flower photographer (I mean you can imagine just how much I adore her work!) based in Surrey and her photos are breathtaking.

Emma runs a successful program of workshops and courses all of which I would love to go on, and is offering a place on the next online Blog Photography Course which commences on Monday 22th September for one of my lovely readers.

You will win a 28 day course which has been designed to cover every aspect of blog photography with 5 video tutorials each week and access to all sorts of loveliness with Emma.

All you have to do is tell us why you would love to win the place. 

• Leave a comment on this blog post OR
• Leave a comment on this Instagram photo OR
• Leave a comment on this Facebook photo

The competition will close at midnight on Friday 19th September and the winner will be announced on Saturday 20th September.

Good luck! 

And don't forget to join in #blogphotochat every Thursday night at 9pm UK time on Twitter. 

When it comes to blogging I am a firm believer if you haven't got anything to say, don't say anything at all. And for the last 2 weeks I have been trying to find the words, the right words, to convey my love and respect for the bravest people I know.

On the 29th August my cousin Sally's little boy Skye died peacefully at home. 

I have seen the piles and piles of letters and cards sent to Sally and Andrew, kind messages on their Loom to the Moon Facebook page and tributes on Twitter. But I have been overwhelmed by the kindness of strangers, wonderfully thoughtful people who have been touched by his story and felt compelled to send me a message, an email, a text or a tweet. 

And it's only when you re read every single one again and again that you truly appreciate just how extraordinary Skye was. To at 5, have a voice that has made a mark.

A boy who has made a difference.

No parent should ever lose their child. It's a pain that you can visibly see rips someone's heart out. And it's a pain that you are helpless to heal. How do you learn to live without that child? In all the countless parenting books you read when you are pregnant, there is never a chapter on this horrendous experience. Life carries on, but for them life has stopped. No one can prepare you. No one could prepare any of us for the reality of the day when we lost him and the day we said goodbye.

Skye B, you will never be forgotten. You were mature beyond your years, with a wit that could outsmart children and grown ups alike. We always said, with your soft blonde curls, that you looked like a little angel, and it seems so dreadfully unfair that you are now an angel in the sky.

You have made people think differently about their lives, to be more grateful, more patient. Sally and Andrew put together an incredible order of service for his heartbreaking funeral and shared their own guide to parenting. Points to remember that we all take for granted so easily. 

The best thing you can give children, next to good habits, are good memories.

Sally and I had our boys within months of each other. It is hard to fathom that we won't have 4 boys having adventures. They shared clothes, milestones and both of us share that quest to capture those times with video and photos. And I am so grateful now, because my boys can remember all the happy ordinary family times we've had together.

Skye B you have given us so many treasured memories and we will all miss you forever.

He had a final message to all his supportive fans on Facebook. A message that I will strive to live by.

We all need to remember to make the most of what we've got. 

Make the most of every day. And hug your small or big ones a little bit tighter. Now go and find the dressing up, or whatever makes your children happy and make them smile like cheshire cats. 

Linking up with The Ordinary Moments

From the age of 6 weeks old I have been visiting our family holiday home in Southbourne. It's the place in the world that I feel truly relaxed and I get hit with a tidal wave of nostalgia that knocks me into a happy place with the full force of childhood sentimentality.

The beach hut is full of photos of all the family and every year we have a week on the sand, come rain or shine. 

Southbourne, thank you for the memories this year. It's such a pleasure to see the boys reliving my childhood, that somethings never get old, feeding the squirrels, running on the bandstand, digging huge holes on the beach. Well this year it was a Red Arrow! 

So here's my Me and Mine for August 2014, recreating the first time we took baby Ollie to our happy place.

Four pairs of long legs! 

Now it's time to head back to Weston and start packing! Moving day is less than 3 weeks away! Somerset here we come.

I've shown you me and mine, now show me you and yours! 

Head over to Lucy's blog and see what her sweet family have been up to. I've been pouring over Lucy's blog this month and her beautiful family portrait sessions they have had and definitely want to book one of our own. I love the snaps we have captured over the Summer but sometimes letting someone else take control of the camera shows you a whole dimension of your family you sometimes miss behind the lens. 

I can't wait to see all your family photos this month.